Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many attendees there have been at each of the public consultation events his Department has held on the draft Airports National Policy Statement.
Answered by John Hayes
The Department held 20 public consultation events around Heathrow Airport between 13 February and 15 March in support of the consultation on the draft Airports National Policy Statement. The table below holds the figures for how many members of the public were recorded as attending each event:
Event | Number of attendees |
Southall | 76 |
Uxbridge | 137 |
Kingston | 206 |
Bracknell | 223 |
Wimbledon | 176 |
Ealing | 224 |
Staines-upon-Thames | 297 |
Twickenham | 354 |
Putney | 257 |
Hounslow | 198 |
Stanwell Moor | 123 |
Kensington | 131 |
Windsor | 167 |
West Drayton | 281 |
Hammersmith | 303 |
Maidenhead | 206 |
Richmond | 429 |
Gerrard’s Cross | 156 |
Slough | 167 |
Isleworth | 229 |
Although these are the recorded attendance figures, there may be a small margin of error resulting from a manual count.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what measures he has put in place for members of the public to raise concerns about the (a) process and (b) content of the nationwide consultation events his Department is running on the Airport National Policy Statement.
Answered by John Hayes
There are a number of ways for members of the public to raise concerns about both the process and content of the consultation events the Department is running on the draft Airports National Policy Statement:
a) Through discussion with officials at the local consultation events;
b) Calling the Department’s consultation enquiry helpline where queries can be logged and directed to the relevant area (0800 689 4968)
c) Emailing RunwayConsultation.admin@dft.gsi.gov.uk
d) By contacting Sir Jeremy Sullivan, the Independent Consultation Adviser at independentadviser@runwayconsultation.gsi.gov.uk
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential road safety implications of aircraft flying low over and alongside the M4 motorway in the event that a third runway is built at Heathrow Airport.
Answered by John Hayes
Safety and security are of paramount importance, these issues were considered by the Airports Commission and will be given due regard again at appropriate points in the process in light of established procedures and standards that apply to all airports.
Flightpaths for an expanded Heathrow have not been formulated and will be subject to consultation as part of the airspace change process.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timetable is for the publication of draft flight paths to and from an expanded Heathrow Airport.
Answered by John Hayes
We cannot be certain about the timing of the publication of draft flight paths for an expanded Heathrow Airport, because the airport operator will be leading the application for the airspace changes needed for new flight paths associated with a new runway. They will need to follow the Civil Aviation Authority’s airspace change process. It is through this process that communities will see and have the opportunity to comment on detailed proposals for any new flight paths. This process covers all aspects of the proposal including safety and environmental impacts, and a requirement to consult the communities that may be affected by the proposal.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish the draft National Policy Statement on the expansion of Heathrow Airport.
Answered by John Hayes
I refer the Hon. Member to the oral statement on airport capacity on 25 October 2016: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/airport-capacity. In that statement my Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State set out how the announcement fits within the planning process, and the opportunities members of this House have to contribute.
He stated that in the New Year, we will bring forward a draft ‘National policy statement’, which includes the details of the proposed scheme.
As required under legislation, this will be subject to a full and extensive public consultation, followed by a period of Parliamentary scrutiny.
Only once members have voted on the final National Policy Statement and it has been designated will the airport be able to bring forward a detailed planning application.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to announce which elements of surface access to the proposed third runway at Heathrow Airport will be funded from the public purse.
Answered by John Hayes
The Government has been clear that the promoter, Heathrow Airport Limited, will meet the costs of the surface access improvements necessary to allow expansion of the airport.
Where a surface access scheme has a wider range of beneficiaries, and are not specific to the addition of a new runway, the Government will consider, along with other relevant stakeholders, the need for public funding on a case-by-case basis.
For schemes such as the Western Rail Link and Southern Rail Access, such considerations would take place at an appropriate time in that project’s development process.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the potential (a) economic benefits and (b) level of new jobs resulting from the third runway at Heathrow Airport by region of the UK.
Answered by John Hayes
The economic benefits of a new runway at Heathrow have been assessed at a national level. It is estimated that a new runway will deliver up to £61 billion of benefits to passengers and the wider UK economy.
The local jobs created at and around the airport have also been assessed, with Heathrow expansion expected to deliver up to 77,000 additional local jobs by 2030. While it is not possible to precisely quantify the impacts on regional jobs and GDP, expanding airport capacity in the South East will support economic growth in the UK’s regions.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on waiving stamp duty for private residents choosing to relocate away from Heathrow Airport after the construction of a third runway.
Answered by John Hayes
The Secretary of State for Transport has not had discussion with the Chancellor about waiving stamp duty. These costs will not fall to local residents as Heathrow Airport Ltd has committed to pay the stamp duty costs for residents in both the compulsory and voluntary purchase zones.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the proportion of potential capacity at Heathrow Airport which will be unfilled when a new third runway is operational.
Answered by John Hayes
A third runway at Heathrow is expected to become operational in 2026 subject to the Government’s consultation on a draft National Policy Statement and the planning process. In its Strategic Fit: Forecasts report, the Airports Commission (AC) published its assessment of how much capacity at the expanded Heathrow could be used.
Capacity is dependent on the level of future aviation demand. The AC therefore considered five alternate demand scenarios. Across these scenarios, Heathrow could reach full capacity by 2035, but in the lowest demand scenario, capacity may not be fully used until 2042.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 28 October 2016 to Question 50202, on Heathrow Airport: night flying, what (a) flexibility and (b) penalties for violation the Government plans to put in place in respect of the six-and-a-half hour ban on night flights from an expanded Heathrow Airport.
Answered by John Hayes
The Government is seeking a legally binding ban on scheduled night flights of six and a half hours at an expanded Heathrow. This would provide an extra hour and a half free from noise compared to today’s operation. The rules around the operation of night flight restrictions would be determined through consultation in line with the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s Balanced Approach to noise management. Furthermore, it is also expected that new binding noise targets and runway alternation arrangements would be consulted on with local communities as part of the planning process.